Past Grief, Makes Present Music
by Crasher320
Summary: Set shortly after the Society of Light. What if Chazz had a talent for music? What if he coped through the songs he played? Dealing with the aftermath of the society of light, people blaming him for bringing it into the school, and nearly destroying it, again, and Chazz is starting to believe them, can his music, and friends set him free? (P.S, new writer, helpful tips are great)
1. Time to Jazz it up!

How past grief, makes present music

Anybody who saw him walking by would just ignore him as he went by, trying to avoid the stares of those who remembered, and those who didn't want to forget. It had been two weeks since the Society of Light incident, and nobody seemed to recall who won the GX tournament, who had saved everyone from the Society, all they remembered was the person who put most of the school into it in the first place. The person who had called himself Sartorious' right hand man, and the person who had almost single handedly caused the school to plunge into chaos, had it not been for Jaden.

So Chazz just kept walking, he had nowhere else to be, and he certainly didn't want to be around for anyone to see what was about to happen, tears forming in his eyes as he picked up the pace. He hated himself for what he did to everyone, for being so….damn blind to just follow someone, even if he was under mind control, that was no excuse.

"….I just can't believe I hurt everyone so much…" he whispered to himself as he kept walking, soon turning into a run as he made his way to the one place no one ever went to, because no one else saw it the way he did. The Reject Well.

As he stared into the well, looking down into the dark cave that once housed the three most annoying monster he'd ever met, he was filled with a mixture of emotions, pain, guilt, comfort. The turmoil causing fresh tears to start forming as he crawled down the ladder to the bottom.

"I really need to tidy this place up" Chazz murmured to himself mostly, but also the gathering duel spirits who always grew excited when he showed up, eager to listen to his sorrows, but also eager to listen to his coping, his great talent.

"Um… Boss, you don't even keep your dorm room clean, how could you clean up a cave?" Ojama Yellow asked as he plopped down on Chazz's shoulder, an innocent question, but it was met with a response he was not expecting.

"I don't know, my room at the Slifer dorm doesn't have so many…._friends_, as this cave…" the tears finally falling to the ground, just a droplet, but it echoed loudly throughout the cave. Soft sobs began to emerge as he slowly started picking up the cards, sorting them, careful to avoid getting them covered in the tears falling as he sorted through them all. Hundreds, thousands of cards were on the ground, but he sorted through them all, finding some additions to his deck during the process. A few Ojama cards, but he found a fusion of his Armed Dragon, and the VWXYZ Dragon Catapult Cannon, which he carefully placed in his deck as he continued his mission.

Hours after he arrived there, he finished sorting them all, placing them in boxed he had moved down there ages ago for cards he thought he could use, he sat down, leaning against a wall, thumbing the pocket on his jacket, a single card fell out, Ojama Yellow.

"Hey, boss, what's wrong? You seem…..really out of it today" Chazz struggled to keep his emotions in check as a new wave of grief rolled over him. "No! No, I'm not okay, it's my fault, it's all my fault. Those Sacred Beast cards getting released, and almost destroying duel monsters, The Society of Light, it's all…..my….fucking fault!" he yelled as he picked up a rock and threw it down the cave, hearing it clack against the ground as it bounced further and further away.

"I hurt everyone, I endangered everybody….Twice! How… how can I even still be here?".

"_Because you righted your wrongs Chazz, you defeated the Society, reclaiming everyone from Sartorious' control, and you stood by, ready to jump in if Jaden needed help against Kagemaru_" .

Chazz audibly snorted as the twin coated behemoth stood in front of him, half white, an angelic presence, and half black, a demonic look, was by his side, gazing into Chazz's soul, as Chazz equally glared back.

"I also recall being the reason everybody needed saving in the first place, because…. I was petty, and jealous…. And just looking to hurt as many people as I could" "_True, you did cause that, but you also fixed your mistake, and worked your hardest to ensure everyone was back to normal, and safe after you returned to yourself"_ Chazz opened his mouth the reply the dual coated dragon in front of him, but decided against it, knowing he'd be proven wrong by the gentle spirit looming nearby, he sighed, and began to stand, and reached for a chest he'd smuggled down there the first time he'd needed a refuge from everyone's feelings.

Chazz popped it open to reveal a beautiful golden saxophone, gleaming in the dim light of the cave. He gave a small smile as he picked up the instrument, and softly, began to play. The Ojamas appeared, hearing the sounds of the saxophone growing louder, more and more spirits appeared as the music grew. Sorrow evident in the song he played as he poured his soul into the tune. Light and Darkness Dragon aiding him as he hummed along, adding more to the song than if he was just by himself, a symphony slowly forming in the well as he pumped more and more into the song, tears starting to stain his face as he let everything loose in the song.

Hours passed, shaking himself from his sadness, his mood improved as he played, eventually going to his favorite, jazz. Getting the spirits in a better mood as he started dancing along to his playing, the Ojamas overjoyed to see him happy again as he started smiling, the spirits eventually began pestering him for songs they'd heard over the years, and Chazz didn't disappoint. Showing them all a good time as he played his heart out for them.

"Alright, alright, the Chazz will play just one more song for you guys, so you better make a good choice!" he shouted across the room as he smiled as all the duel spirits began thinking, talking amongst themselves to find a song they wanted to end the night with.

Suddenly, across the crowd, a unanimous call is echoed: "**DANCE WITH YOU TONIGHT!**" Chazz's eyes widened at the mention of one of his favorite songs to perform, but smiled nonetheless. "Alright, if that's what you want, that's what you'll get"

He raised his hand in the air, a huge grin on his face, "Let's Chazz it up!" He began blowing into the sax, an upbeat tune starting to belt out as he let himself go into the music.

It was well after dark when Chazz was finally out of breath, albeit in a better mood.

"Okay, I need someone to check outside for me, I don't want anyone knowing about this, I…I can't have people knowing that the Chazz, isn't as strong as he puts out" "No problemo boss! We're on it!" "Good, now get to it you three runts!"

After having the Ojama brothers report back that everything was clear, he began the long climb out of the well, and the even longer walk back to the Slifer dorm.

"I have got to put a bed, or a couch down there or something, just to sit down on, my feet are killing me" he tiredly mumbled as he approached the dorm. Opening the door to the cafeteria, he wearily stumbled to the kitchen to get a late dinner, as everyone else was asleep.

**Almost everyone**.

"Chazz? Hey, you left in a bit of a hurry after class today, you alright man?" A very tired looking Jaden was standing at the cafeteria door, looking at his rival, curious about the condition of his friend, he walked over to where he was standing, a bowl full of leftover rice being put into the microwave, and a bottle of soy sauce being pulled from the fridge.

"Oh, uh….yeah, I guess I'm fine now, just, needed time to think that's all" He hastily began pouring soy sauce onto the rice, spilling some in the process. Chazz audibly growled and cleaned it before Jaden could wipe it up with the napkin in his hand.

"So, Chazz, there's been some rumors going around, something about a ghost haunting the old forest" he began a little slowly, careful not to aggravate his rival into an emotional state. "people are saying it's some kind of dual spirit, or something like it" Chazz rolled his eyes, "it's probably just some dumb first year missing his mother, and still being afraid of the boogey man, or, whatever else the hell is out there" Chazz began to snicker at the thought of a young child being spooked by a man in a bed sheet.

"Well, apparently it's haunting the island, some of the students, and even the teachers are complaining that there's an eerie sound coming from the forest, some kind of….music, I think they said it was, in a clearing next to the old well".

Chazz dropped the bowl of rice he was holding, his face going pale as he began shaking in his seat.

**Someone knew, someone had heard him in the forest**.

'Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, someone heard me! What am I gonna do? People can't know about this! I can't believe this! Did someone follow me? No, I would have noticed, right?' he felt a hand on his shoulder as he looked up to see Jaden trying to shake him out of his thoughts.

"Chazz, you okay?! You went white as a sheet, and just start mumbling about that damn well". "It..It's nothing! It's absolutely nothing! Just, go back to bed you…you…Slacker!" Shouting that last part, he stormed off to his room, and locked it.

'Oh, this is just fucking terrible, I gotta do something about this, and fast" he grumbled, rubbing his temples as Ojama Yellow poked his head through the wall. "Uh, hey boss? We got a problem".


	2. Getting off tempo

**Quick author's note before we continue with our regularly scheduled fiction, this world is a mixture of both the anime, and manga, Chazz's deck will still change up, a lot. And it will mostly focus on the VXXYZ, Ojama, and of course, Armed Dragon cards, but it will include Light and Darkness in it for a secret last resort.**

**There will be dueling in this fic, in a few chapters, if not the next one. And, I'm curious if I should include the songs they'll be playing, or just skip over them, leave your thoughts for the next chapter!**

**I do not own Yugioh GX, or any of it's characters, please no sue!**

**Anyways, without further ado, let's get back to Past Grief, makes Present Music.**

"Hey, uh, Boss, we got a problem"

Chazz's head was spinning as he turned to the floating spirit above him. Sweat forming on his forehead as he began to panic.

"What do you mean, 'a problem'? We have enough of those already, people have heard me in the forest, and are probably going to go check out what's going on" He was fearful and enraged all in the moment, hoping it wasn't anything to do with what had happened today.

"Well, uh….you see boss, You know how a few days ago, Winged Kuriboh showed up at the well?" Chazz's eyes widened with fear as he spun to look at Ojama Yellow. "He was there tonight?! We had a deal, he wasn't gonna tell anybody, especially not Jaden!" "Boss, calm down, or everyone is gonna know. And that's the thing, he didn't tell Jaden, but he overheard that Alexis, Jaden, and the rest of the gang are gonna try and find the 'musical monster' in the woods, and they're starting by the well"

"Fuck, fuck, fuck, this is bad. Alright, tomorrow we go to the well before them, and….. we get everything bad to before today, we hide the sax, and the boxes, everything that happened today will never have happened!" He was pacing back and forth, his palms sweating as he began to panic more and more. "Boss, we'll let everyone know what's going on, you get some rest, you're gonna need it" "Well then, get moving you idiot, there's plenty of work to do, and we'll have minimal time to do it in you overgrown pitstain!"

Yellow just nodded and disappeared as he left. Chazz simply ran his head through his hair and fell onto his pillow, screaming into it to muffle the noise.

"Why, the hell, can't I ever hold on to one good thing?!" he just pounded his hands against the bed, tears beginning to form in his eyes. "I mean, it was perfect, nobody ever went to that stupid hole in the ground, why now, do people get curious?!" "_Because it is something they do not know, and wish to learn about, hence, they want to investigate the source of the disturbance to their day-to-day lives_" "Why are you always so insightful and helpful you contrasting bookmark?!" _Because you always need insight and help" _"Just…..stop being so damn smart!"

The dual colored giant settled beside him to look into his eyes, "_Chazz, you knew this was bound to happen sooner or later, but now is not the time to panic, now is the time to prepare, if you wish to keep hiding this talent, you will go to the well tomorrow morning, scatter the cards in the boxes, and hide the sax at the far end of the cave. Am I clear?_" Chazz rolled his eyes as he looked into the heterochromatic eyes of his contrasting companion.

"Crystal clear" he muttered as he rolled off the bed. He slid off his black jacket, hanging it by the door, and pulled off his outer clothing. Shaking his head, he climbed under the covers, his last thought before the sleep pulled his eyes down was: 'How am I gonna get out of this one?'

Chazz was awoken by the screechy voice of an Ojama, and the squeaks of a particularly furry flying furball.

"Boss, time to wake up, now! Jaden is itching to check out the forest, and you still got to get everything set up!" Chazz's eyes sprung open as he jumped out of bed, throwing on his trademark black pants, dark purple shirt, he was running out the door as he grabbed his trench coat and threw it on.

"Shit, shit, shit! I've got to beat those slackers to the well, pronto!" As he picked up the pace, the three Ojama brothers popped up by him.

"Boss, I think you got a bit more time, but I'd still hurry if I was you, Jaden doesn't take long to get breakfast down" "Thank you, for that bit of insight, look, Green, Black, you two go and watch those idiots, and me and Yellow will get to the well to make sure everything is ready, if you have to, try and stall them!" He inhaled as he leaned forward to try and pick up his pace.

'Gotta reach the well, fast!" He gritted his teeth together as he jumped over a fallen branch, following the old beaten path, so familiar under his feet. 'How many times have I walked down here in the past few weeks?' He wondered to himself as he shook loose the thoughts cluttering his mind. 'No time for that! Gotta focus'.

"Boss, the Reject Well, dead ahead!" Ojama Yellow exclaimed as they reached the hole in the ground, just as Ojama Green appeared in front of them. "Just in time, the rest of the gangs on their way, and Black still doesn't know that magic trick yet, hurry!" They nodded as Chazz grabbed the ladder of the well and slid down. Hitting the ground, he turned to the boxes lines against the cave wall.

"Sorry guys, I can't have anyone knowing what happens in here, I'll come back and clean you all up again later, I promise" tears forming in his eyes as he picked up the boxes, one by one, dumping them near the ladder of the well, as to avoid suspicion. Chazz finally turned to the chest holding the sax, soft sobs coming getting caught in his throat as he picked it up with a groan.

"Have to finish before they get here, have to, can't let them know…." Chazz mumbled as he carefully laid the chest in the far end of the cave, heading back to the ladder, he carefully walked around the cards on the ground. "I'll be back to clean you guys up" He whispered as he began the long climb up the ladder, reaching the top, he stretched his tired limbs and aching joints.

Realizing in his haste, he had forgotten he was extremely hungry. Shaking the fatigue and anxiety from his head, he began the long walk back to the Slifer dorm, whistling to himself as he took a slow pace back. As he reached the Slifer dorm, he saw a group of people banging on a door, he just shook his head.

'Who are those scrubs trying to wake up this early anyway? It's barely past six in the morning' then it hit him.

**That was Jaden, Alexis, Syrus, Hasselberry, and Atticus. And it was his door they were trying to get into.**

"What are you idiots doing?!" He shouted up at them as they turned to see him standing on the ground below them. Jaden being the first to speak up "Chazz?! What are you doing down there? We thought you were still in bed!" "It's just past six. By all accounts I should still be in bed" Hasselberry was the next to call him out. "So how come you're out on patrol, and not in your barracks soldier? It's pretty AWOL of you to go out to check the perimeter" He just rolled his eyes. "Let's just say a certain someone came to me this morning, and said I should check something out, and leave it at that"

Chazz was almost to the cafeteria when he was stopped by two Obelisk Blue students of their group.

"Chazz, c'mon, something's up, and we want to know what it is, you know something, don't you?" Syrus getting closer as he tried to pry into someone else's business. "You're right, I know you're in my way to getting breakfast short-stack!" Seeing Syrus' face almost made up for the fact he was now face to face with the one person he really didn't want to talk to, or be around.

**Alexis Rhodes.**

She glared daggers at him as she stepped directly in his way.

"Talk. Now Chazz. You clearly know something's going on, you don't go for walks, hell, you can barely get out of bed before noon! So, spill it, now!" Chazz's face went from tired frown, to angry glare in about a second. "Look, you want to know what happened, as him!" He pulled out his deck and ruffled through it a moment before pulling out a white and black dragon card. "He knows everything that happened this morning, he sent me on the mission, so ask. Him." After that, Chazz walked around Alexis into the cafeteria and grabbed a tray, hoping the trouble would end there.

**It did not.**

The group stormed in after him, Alexis, and Hassleberry looking significantly pissed as Chazz sat down at the table, barely taking a bite of toast before Alexis glared into his eyes. Before the society, he would have given anything to this close to her, now, he wished nothing more than to be in the well, far away from her.

"Look, what do you want from me?" "The truth dumbass, now talk". Chazz almost growled at the glares he was receiving from the crew, all except Syrus and Jaden were drilling holes into his soul by their eyes.

"Alright, fine. Jaden was talking about the weird rumor going around about some weird ghost, or, whatever the hell it is, in the forest, and Light and Darkness wanted to go check it out, see what it was, we didn't find anything while we were out, and I got hungry, so now, I want my breakfast" he glared back as he took a bite from his toast. Everybody but Alexis seemed content with his answer, but she backed down.

"So you didn't find anything? Not, a single shred of anything?" He just shook his head, "No, but I did hear the music. I followed it for, what seemed like an hour, but it just seemed to go in one single direction." Jaden leaned in. "So you actually heard it? The Music? What did it sound like?" Chazz, realizing he made a mistake, but, had to follow through, or else definitely get found out, continued.

"I'm not certain, it almost sounded like jazz, but changed pretty frequently. I couldn't really determine where it came from" Jaden then pipes up, "Well, let's go to where you heard it last and see if we can't find it!" Almost choking on the toast, Chazz sputters out, "We…we can't go out there again, I was out for for like an hour, there's nothing out there!" Alexis then gets in close, almost as if to taunt him. "Well then you'll know the way, now move it buster!" "Okay, okay, c'mon, I know the way".

They begin the long walk into the forest, ways to try and lead everyone from the well beginning to form in his mind as they trekked through the trees and mud.

"Uh, boss, I thought we were trying to keep them away from the…." "Shut it you pipsqeak! Jaden can see, and hear you, remember? Keep a low profile, and don't worry, I have a plan" "Hey, Chazz, who you talking to up there bud?" "No one, Jaden, just, no one".

They reach the well, and decide to look around, splitting into groups. Syrus, Hassleberry, and Atticus, search the nearby bushes and trees, while Jaden, Alexis, and Chazz look into the well.

"I can't believe a place like this exists, it's so, depressing, people just throwing all these cards into the well. I mean, even low attack monsters have good effects sometimes, right?" "Yeah, unless you're an Ojama" Chazz stated as he dropped down, landing beside Jaden and Alexis.

"Man, it feels like, well, years since we've been down here, and, there's still cards everywhere" As he stooped down to look at some of them, Alexis began to walk throughout the cave. Chazz just breathed as he placed his hand on a damp cave wall. 'I can't lose this place, this…..sanctuary, it's all I have left, my pride, friends. The society…made me lose them all, not to mention any respect Alexis had for me' He sighed as he began walking in the direction of his sax, hoping no one would go the way he went.

"Hey, Jaden, you find anything?" "Nothing, just duel spirits, but they're all saying they can't wait for that Jazz guy to come back, he really knew how to make things swing down here." Chazz's face paled when he heard Jaden say that phrase, jazz. 'Those fools, if they're not careful, this secret is gonna get out everywhere!' "Jazz, isn't that a kind of music Lex?" she wanders over to see what they can get, but is just as lost as Jaden.

"Well, yes, it is, but, who would come down here to play jazz? It doesn't make any sense, unless it's some kind of duel spirit" "Well, I mean maybe they come here because, no one else does? For privacy?" Alexis and Jaden both look at Chazz with looks of shock on their faces. "Since when do you know, let alone give a crap about other's feelings?" his face turned a shade of red only seen when mad. "Look, I took a guess, what's the problem with that?"

"Alright, look, I think we got enough info here to try and figure something out about this, Jazz guy" Jaden quickly intervening between the two of them, stopping the upcoming argument. "Let's just, head back to the dorm, and figure something out, alright?" "Yeah, alright". Chazz just glared at them both as they headed for the ladder. "Aren't you coming Chazz?" "Yeah, in a minute, I just, saw some Ojama cards I want to check out" "Ah, no sweat, just meet up with us when you're done, okay?" "Whatever, you two go have fun".

As they left, Chazz could just barely hear Alexis say to Jaden, "I wonder what kind of introverted weirdo would go and play jazz in front of cards? That's just, so dumb." "Hey, come on, the kid's probably just shy, no need to poke fun of him" "I guess, but still, it's gotta be someone who's pretty terrible at music to want to just, hide it away like that"

Tears forming in his eyes as he heard them walk way, Chazz took a deep breath, and began to once again, sort through all the cards, wiping the dirt off of them. Carefully placing them in the boxes again.

"I just….I can't believe this, I knew she didn't like me, but that's just, overly harsh." He sat next to the boxes, trying to organize his thoughts, a dull ache in his chest signifying another heartbreak. "Hey, boss, it's probably because she hasn't heard you play, she can't make that call. And, I'm sure she thinks of you as a friend" Chazz just laughed, it held no mirth, and there was no smile as it left his lips.

"No, she doesn't. She tolerates me because of Jaden, not because she likes me" "_You should learn to be less harsh on yourself, the rest of this school is already doing a well enough job of that already_" "Oh, you're no help"

He walks over to the far end of the cave, dragging back the chest, he pulls out the sax, and breaths.

"Boss, you sure you want to do this?" "No, but I need to get rid of all this stress and….heartache I'm feeling right now" "_Then play, and forget the worries you hold in your mind, and release the pain in your heart once again_"

Beginning to play a few notes, tears slowly flowing down his face as the music flowed from his Sax. The pain, and hurt on his face showing just how much he took to heart. Taking deep breaths to steady himself, he finished the tune to see many duel spirits around him, tears forming in the eyes of those that had them. A small smile on his face as he put his instrument away, and began climbing up the ladder to return to the dorm. This time taking long, slow steps.

'It's not like they're on the edge of their seats waiting for me' he smiled slightly as he continued walking, hoping that he could maybe fix his past mistakes, and right the wrongs he'd committed.

**Or maybe he'd just try and leave everyone alone.**

**They seemed better off without him around anyway.**


	3. Losing Rhythm

**A couple of things before I get going.**

**To Guest reviewer, I'm not trying to set up everything so Chazz is the ultimate underdog, it's just how this story is going so far. Alexis is mean and cruel to Chazz because of the Society incident, he beat her, brainwashed her, and it was Jaden who saved her, not Chazz. Even if he saved the rest of the school, he still got them all in the first place, hence the grudge.**

**As for why he didn't go to the Well right away, simple. Panic, pure, unadulterated panic, it makes you second guess yourself, it's unreasonable. And after the emotional trial he went through, he needed the sleep. But thank you for the insight.**

**Anyway, back to our regularly scheduled programming.**

"Man, I wish I could say I didn't remember how much heartbreak hurt, but, it's just as bad as the last time. Maybe worse" Chazz barely muttered to himself as he walked the long beaten path back to the dorms. Classes had been hell, and he either wanted to sleep, or go for a jam session, but seeing as everyone was still trying to find the 'swingin' duelist' he'd been out of the well for a few days. Growing visibly more irritated as the days passed by, he kept putting it off.

"It's just too damn risky to go to the well right now…." "Uh, boss? I don't mean to be, well, an idiot about this, but you've been…..not so agreeable lately". Chazz glared at the Yellow spirit above him. "I know, I've been a real jerk, but I can't go to the well for a bit, just until things cool down a bit.

His thoughts were interrupted by a familiar face catching up to him on the way back. A certain Slifer Slacker was calling his name, trying to get his attention.

"Chazz! Hey, wait up man! I want to talk!" Jaden shouted after him, trying to catch up as he raced down the path. Chazz audibly growled as Jaden managed to catch up.

"Is there any reason you want to talk to me? I'm not really the friendly type, you of all people should know this by now." "Come on man, I just...well, you seem so down in the dumps recently, yeah, you've always been a bit moody, but this is a whole new level for you man". "Yeah, I noticed, people are leaving me alone for a change. How great is that?" he mumbled as he tried to walk past Jaden. However the Slifer wasn't having it.

"Come on Chazz, talk to me. What's going on? You seem, well, angry with the world". A temple began forming in his temple. "Well, maybe if everyone stopped holding a grudge, I'd be a lot fucking happier, alright?" "Holding a grudge? What's that supposed to mean?" "It means nothing! Leave me alone already!" And he began walking away, hoping that end of this 'chat'.

"Alright, you, me, duel, now sourpuss" The sound of a duel disk activating was the only thing Chazz heard as he turned to face Jaden, a serious expression on his face as he stared down his rival.

"Grrr…..Fine, bring it Scrub, but when I win, you leave me alone, and you tell everyone else in this stupid circle to do the same!" "Deal, but if I win, you tell us what's been going on, and why you're so miserable recently" "Whatever! Duel!"

**Chazz. 4000 LP**

**Jaden. 4000 LP**

"I think I'll start things off! I draw!" Jaden looks at the cards in his hand, thinking for a moment. "Alright, first, I'm gonna set a monster, than, I'll activate the spell card E-Emergency call, this lets me search my deck for a hero monster, and I choose, Elemental Hero Ocean!" Revealing the monster he added, he places it in his hand. "Next, I'll throw down two face downs, and call it a turn"

"Alright, my turn, Slacker. I draw!" looking into his opening hand, he was surprised to see the options he had. Armed Dragon LV 3 with a level up, or go with V Tiger Jet and W-Wing Catapult with Frontline base? "I'll summon Armed Dragon LV three! Next, I activate a spell card, Level Up, watch as Armed Dragon LV 3, goes to 5!" as the small orange dragon grew to the bigger one. "Armed Dragon LV 5, attack Jaden's facedown monster! Inferno Roar!" The Dragon began spinning it's arm and smashed into a facedown Elemental Hero Woodsman, sending it to the grave.

"I'll set one card face down, and end my turn, during which, Armed Dragon LV 5 evolves into Armed Dragon LV 7!" as his monster changed into a higher form, Chazz begin to think. 'Okay, got one of the pieces, just need a few more'

"I guess it's my turn now. Draw!" Jaden smirked as he looked at his hand, "I activate the Warrior returning alive, this brings back my Woodsman!" as the card popped out of the graveyard, Jaden slotted another card into his duel disk. "Now, I activate polymerization, to fuse my two Heroes, Ocean, and Woodsman, in order to create Elemental Hero Terra Firma!"

**Elemental HERO Terra Firma. Attack: 2500 Defense: 2000**

As the white skinned hero stood before Chazz's dragon, a thought crossed his mind. 'Okay, Jaden wouldn't have summoned this thing, unless he was gonna use it to beat my dragon, so he's gotta have some kind of method to take down my monster'

"Now, here's everybody's favorite Golden boy, Elemental Hero Sparkman!" as the gold clad hero emerged, the plan donned on. "I tribute Sparkman to activate Terra Firma's effect! Terra Firma Magma!"

**Elemental Hero Terra Firma. Attack 2500+1600=4100**

As Sparkman disappeared, Terra Firma's strength went up, more than enough to take down Chazz's monster.

"Now, Terra Firma, attack Chazz's Armed Dragon LV 7! Earth Impact!" As he said the command, the attack was launched, destroying Chazz's dragon.

**Chazz LP. 4000-1300=2700**

Chazz was knocked back as his dragon disappeared, he stood back up, growling, he reached over his duel disk and drew.

"My turn! I draw!" looking at the card he drew, 'Pot of greed, there's something' viewing his options to try and get Terra Firma off the field, he gets an idea.

"Alright, first, I'm gonna play Pot of Greed, which lets me draw two more cards" pulling two cards from the top of his deck, he looks at them. Ojamagic, and Ojamassimillation.

"Next I'm gonna summon V-Tiger Jet, then, here's the spell card Frontline Base, which let's me special summon a Union monster, like W-Wing Catapult from my hand" as the two monsters appeared in front of him.

"Now, I merge V-Tiger Jet, and W-Wing Catapult, to make VW-Tiger Catapult, Now, I'll activate its effect to discard a card, and change the battle position of one of your monsters! I discard Ojamagic to change the battle position of Terra Firma to defense. Now, Ojamagic kicks in, getting the three Ojama brothers to my hand" As he says this, he searches his deck and pull out Ojama Yellow, Green, and Black. "Finally, I'll play this little number, Ojamassimilation! Which let's me reveal a light machine fusion monster, and I then banish Ojama monsters up to the number of fusion materials I need to summon, from my hand, or deck" He then puts the three Ojama brothers in his jacket pocket, before summoning X-Head Cannon, Y-Dragon Head, and Z-Metal Tank" as they appear, a grin appears on his face.

"Now, I banish X,Y, and Z, to make XYZ Dragon Cannon!" As another Fusion monster appears before them, a thought runs through his head 'I'm finally gonna beat this slacker! Nothing is gonna stop this combo'.

"Now! I banish VW, and XYZ, to make VWXYZ-Dragon Catapult Cannon!" A bigger mechanical menace emerges and stares down Jaden's Hero. Jaden's face starts to show a smile as he looks at the new threat presented to him.

"Not bad Chazz, I knew you still had it in you, but that's only one big monster, not enough to stop me" "Oh, this isn't the big monster I'm gonna use to flatten you Jaden!" Jaden takes a moment to process what Chazz said. "Wait, what?" "I now banish VWXYZ from my field, and Armed Dragon LV 7 from my graveyard, in order to make Armed Dragon Catapult Cannon! Now, go! And destroy his Terra Firma!" The mechanical monstrosity flies over and smashes into the Hero, seeing it vaporise left Chazz grinning like a fool.

"Well Jaden, looks like I win, as long as I control this monster, you've got no chance!" And he began laughing, "There's no way I can lose" "You wanna bet Chazz? I activate the quick-play spell, the flute of summoning Kuriboh!" "What?! No!" "Yes, and you know what this means, here comes Winged-Kuriboh!" as the facedown disappeared from Jaden's field, the furball himself popped up to say hello "_Kuri, Kuri!"_ "Now, I activate my other face-down card. Here's Transcendent Wings! Winged Kuriboh goes all the way up to level 10! And, his effect activates, destroying every monster on the field, and dealing you damage equal to their attack points, but you already know that, don't you Chazz?" "No, it can't….you can't, it was perfect!" Chazz shouts, but it was too late.

**Chazz LP. 2700-3500=0**

**Jaden wins**

Chazz falls to the ground, tears beginning to form in his eyes, as he beats his fist into the dirt. Jaden walks over, and crouches down beside him, hesitantly placing his hand on Chazz's shoulder, only to have it brushed off. Hot tears now streaming down Chazz's face as he kept punching the ground, pouring his rage into each impact.

"Chazz? I know you lost, but, it was just a duel man" "No!….no it wasn't…..this wasn't just….some duel…. Everyone would have been free of me…..you….Alexis...everyone! And you just….had to win...you...you...Fucking Slifer Slacker!" Jaden, taken aback by Chazz's outburst of emotion, takes a second to realize what Chazz is saying.

"Free of you? I thought you wanted us to leave you alone?" "No! Why would you want to be around me?! Huh?! I screw up in everything I do! Try to confess to a girl I like? Lose the….fucking duel, essentially open the gates of hell, and almost have duel monsters erased!" "But, the spirit keys weren't even needed to open the spirit gates, remember?" "Or trying to get enough power and skill to beat you? I end up….just….fucked over, I'm missing months in memory, and I convert the entire…..fucking school into a cult. Heh….How fucked up is that?!" Pounding his fist into the ground, harder, harder each time, trying to make the earth feel exactly how he feels.

"Chazz...I...I had no idea you felt this way, but, it's not your fault. It was Sartorius' fault" "Yeah, and if I hadn't gone anywhere near that creep, or….listened to these three morons!" pulling out the three Ojama brothers and throwing them at Jaden. "...I wouldn't have been under his control

In the first place"

Chazz just vented, and let every pent up moment in him go, in front of Jaden, but he just sat there and listened, trying to understand what his rival was going through. In the end, Chazz's eyes were red from the tears, his voice hoarse and dry. Chazz had drained himself, and was in no position to argue when Jaden helped him up so they could go to the dorms.

"Don't you fucking tell anyone what happened here…..got it?" Chazz managed to cough out as he tried to dry his eyes. Hoping he didn't look how he did.

"Well….fine, but you need help" "No! I don't! I….I can let this out in other ways…" "Oh yeah? Like what Chazz?" "None of your fucking business" he muttered, hoping his eyes would clear up before they got to their dorm.

**They did not.**

As Jaden helped Chazz walk to his room, he was intercepted by Hassleberry and Syrus, both wondering where they went after classes ended.

"Hey Sarge, where'd you two go after class? It been a few hours, y'all should have been back ages ago" "Yeah, Hassleberry's got a point Jay, where have you two been?" Jaden looked at Chazz, who was in no condition to talk, let alone tell them off.

"Just, out for a stroll, and a friendly duel, that's all" "So, how come your squad member looks like he took a royal beating at the Officer's club after not paying for the drinks?" "Oh, uh...He's just really tired, he needs some rest" And promplty placed Chazz in his room, and closed the door.

'Fuck…..why did I open up to that idiot? This is going to suck, a lot, he can't keep a secret. They probably already know, just…..great' "_Well, it could be worse, Alexis could have been there to see you_" "Oh good, she'll think even less of me, fantastic, remind me to go find her later" "_Chazz, I know these past few days have been rough, especially with how things with her are going, but you should not have tried to just isolate yourself from them" _"They would have been significantly better off without me, trust me" "_In this matter, I will not argue with you, but you should see something you bring to their lives_" "Toils, agony, and frustration?" "_No, you fool. Listen, tomorrow you go to the well, and you unwind, as usual, and I have news, Atticus has been around the well looking for the musician, he found your sax, but does not know who it belongs to, however he'd set up lookouts at the well, seeing if anyone goes to play. Maybe he can help you through this_" "Yeah, or, he'll tell Alexis, and things will just go badly, like usual" "_Rest for now, we will figure out what to do in the morning_"

As the rest of the gang sat in the Slifer cafeteria, Jaden went over to Alexis, slightly nervous, but hopeful.

"Hey Alexis! How's it going?" She looked up to see Jaden lightly fidgeting with his hands, curious, she responded with, "I'm okay, and, is there something you want to ask Jaden?" her heart fluttering just a little bit, hoping that it would finally happen.

"Well, you know how Chazz has been a bit, down lately?" "Oh, yeah, I know. He hasn't even looked at me in a few days" "Yeah, me either, or, anybody really, he's just, kept to himself, and pushed everybody away. More so than usual" Alexis, looking more and more disappointed by the second, went straight to the point, "Where are you going with this Jaden?" "I just want a few of us to go up and talk to him, see what's going on, we had a duel a while ago, and he almost won. But, he had a total breakdown after he lost, just, bottling every little worry up inside of him"

She just sighed, knowing Jaden was worried about their...classmate was nice and all, and she was starting to get a little concerned about him herself. "Alright, when do you want to do this?" He scratched the back of his neck, "Well, how about tomorrow? We're all free, so it should be okay." She simply nodded. "Alright, tomorrow morning?" he nodded this time, "sounds good to me".

The next day, Jaden and Alexis wander up to Chazz's room, to check on him, seeing a note, they read it, scribbled messily on it was simply "be back sometime".

Alexis was about to tell Jaden how stupid it was when they heard it.

**The saxophone in the distance.**

**Apparently Chazz could wait while they checked out the musician. **


	4. Finding the Tune

The sound of running footsteps was all that was heard in the early morning as a Slifer Red and an Obelisk Blue student were heard speeding down the path to the forest. Both trying to outrun the other as they raced to the Reject Well, knowing that the identity of the musician would be revealed to them soon enough. Jaden smiling like a fool as he managed to take the lead.

"C'mon Lex, I thought you were quick on your feet!" He laughed as he jumped over a fallen log, Alexis laughed as she picked up the pace, catching up to her friend. "Well, I'm just as fast as you are Jaden, maybe even faster" and she pulled ahead of him. Both giving their all, as they raced down the path.

As they reached the well, the music grew louder and more pronounced, looking to each other, Jaden offered a smile. "Ladies first?" as he scratched the back of his neck, Alexis gave a small scowl, but began the climb down into the well, followed by Jaden.

As they reached the bottom of the well, they were greeted by a sight they were not expecting. Atticus surrounded by a group of his fangirls, casually playing away at a beautiful golden sax.

"It was you this whole time? You're the Jazz duelist? Why am I not surprised?" Atticus looks up to see his sister with an exasperated look on her face, smiling, he sets the sax down, and walks over to her. "Believe me little sis, I'd be happy if that title went to me, but I was checking around this place when I found this magnificent instrument, I gave it a go, and it sounds amazing, but, it's not mine. However, I think we at least have a clue now." Alexis sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose as she walked off to think. Jaden, growing ever curious, walked up to the Obelisk student holding the sax. "So, why did you think to check in the well? We were here a couple days ago and didn't find a thing." Atticus gave him a smirk. "I've been scouting around here for a little while, and I've seen someone coming in and out of the well, and hearing that music playing after that person goes in. It's just a matter of finding the person. That's all".

Alexis, hearing her brother had found a trace, walked over to him again. "You saw the person leaving the well? Why didn't you confront them? Why didn't you figure out who it was?" Atticus blushed and began scratching the back of his neck. "Well, I was so moved by the music, by the time I was focussed again, they were already gone". She growled. "Well, we're close to finding out who this person is, and we will figure it out". They all nodded in agreement, planning to stakeout the place the next few nights to see if they could catch the musician.

Sitting at his desk, trying his best to ignore everyone attempting to see him that day, was Chazz. Notes being drawn onto hand drawn music lines, drafting his own song, it was going well until 'someone' interrupted him.

'Uh, boss, we got a bit of a situation, that's kind of major" "Well, what is it? I'm making good progress here, and I don't want to stop for a little while yet, I'm… in the zone". Smiling as he goes back to his paper, Ojama Yellow swallows hard, then turns to his two brothers.

"Hey! Isn't it your turn to hand over the bad news Green?" "Wuh, uh, no, I gave him the news about the showers, and the toilets freezing in the winter, uh, Black?" "Not a chance you numbskulls, I gave him the news that Jaden was Alexis' valentine four months" "But this is so much worse than BOTH of those, c'mon guys?!". Chazz growled as he put down his pen. "One of you Science experiment rejects tell me what's going on, NOW!" as he slammed his fist into the table.

"_I'll handle this with tact, you three fools seem to lack in that department. Chazz, Atticus saw you the other night exiting the well, he doesn't know who you are, but he knows someone goes to the well to play. He's also located your saxophone, and him, Jaden, and Alexis have set up a watch tonight, to try and determine who the musician of the well is_" "I was SEEN?!" turning to the Ojama brothers with a quickly growing scowl on his face. "You three shitheads were supposed to keep watch!" "_it is not their fault, they didn't see Atticus, he was well hidden. Even I didn't spot him until you were well on your way back to the dorms_" Chazz took a deep breath to calm himself as he began pacing his room, thoughts running through his head a million miles a minute as he tried to find a solution.

"Well, I guess we just have to spring the trap" Chazz said aloud, the Ojamas look more confused than ever, but Light and Darkness Dragon had a look of surprise on his face. "_I feel like this will involve some minor misdirection"_ "Oh, you're damn right it will. First, I'm gonna need my old Obelisk Blue coat, that'll throw them off track, then, I'm gonna need some kind of mask, something that'll hide my face, I can't be seen" He searched his room, looking for anything that could work, then, he spotted his old Obelisk Blue jacket. It was ripped, it was stained, and it would work perfectly.

"Now here's something that should be able to help mask the Chazz's identity" hanging his coat on the wall, Chazz dons the blue trenchcoat. Looking in the mirror, he smiles, 'Man, this look goes way back, back when I was someone completely different, now I just need a mask' Looking around his room once again, he winced as he saw the one thing he'd hoped was long gone.

His white trench coat lay in a corner of the room, it had been buried under some of his clothes, but it'd been uncovered by his recent searching. He then smirked.

"This is definitely something I should have done when I snapped out of it". He then began to rip the coat into sections, strips, and began to form it into a makeshift hood. Taking a moment to admire his handiwork, Chazz slipped it on, and buttoned up his coat.

"Alright, go time, I have to get my sax, and get out of there. Fast" "_Do you have a plan Chazz?_" "Yup, improvise".


	5. Catching the Melody

**Quick Author's note before I get back into this long awaited chapter.**

**School has been super busy, so I had to take a hiatus to do work, and get over a massive writer's block that just kind of slammed me in the face. **

**To the guest reviewer, I wrote Alexis as mean for three reasons. 1, after the society, she was cold, and distant, and barely spoke to Chazz, 2, she got nothing out of the society, she actually lost her individuality, and that was one of the things she held most dear, and 3, she is not the kind of gal who likes it when people keep secrets, especially from her. You'll also be happy to know I am sticking to my guns, no need to worry about that.**

**Now, onto this much awaited continuance, of Past Grief, Makes Present Music.**

Stretching his arms and neck as he walked forward, a tattered Obelisk Blue coat donned instead of his usual black coat, Chazz began the long walk to the Reject Well to rescue his saxophone. Tugging at the sleeves to try and fit his arms, they were just slightly too short to fit. Looking for signs of anyone on the path ahead of him, Chazz cautiously tugged the mask made from his old Society jacket, making sure his face was covered as he kept moving forwards. A twin colored behemoth appeared along beside him, guiding the way in the darkness.

"_You do realize they've set a trap for you, right?_" "I know, that's why I'm in the cape and cowl, so if they do spot me, they won't recognize me….hopefully" as he pulled the mask tighter. Noticing footprints in the ground, Chazz slowed his pace, coming to a halt, he started listening. No sound was heard, no voice, no breathing, no footsteps.

"It's quiet, this is too easy, they're either in the well, waiting for me, or waiting to spring out when I leave". He mumbled aloud, taking a few careful steps forward, he stopped, hearing leaves rustle nearby. Scanning the shrubbery nearby for anything, Chazz saw nothing, but he knew someone was near.

'Time to get a move on, I need to be quick' He bolted forward, stopping at the hole, stepping down, he grabbed the ladder and slid his way down, hitting the ground, hard.

"Fuck! That's gonna leave a mark!" He cursed silently as he ran into the cave, card spirits around him rising up.

Be careful Chazz! They're gonna be waiting for when you climb back up!" He smirked as he ran to the chest, cracking it open, his beautiful golden sax lay in its case, everything appeared normal except for one thing. There was a note on it, he looked around to make sure no one was behind him as he picked up the note and read it.

'Hey man! This is one swinging piece of metal you got here! Sorry I took it for a test drive the other day, I couldn't resist. I'm not certain if you'll care enough to read this, but if you are, consider me a fan of your work. Your's truly. Atticus Rhodes' Chazz smiled as he pocketed the note, keeping it safe.

'At least an actual person likes my work' he muttered as he slung the case over his back, he stopped to ponder his options.

'Can't go up and out, they're probably waiting for me right there, hm…..but I can't stay in here, otherwise someone's gonna clue in at the dorm's tomorrow morning when I'm not in bed. Think, Chazz, think!". He began pacing, doubt and nerve beginning to set in as a certain Yellow spirit popped by.

"Boss, you really didn't think this far ahead, did you?" "Of course I didn't, I was just, in the heat of the moment, I needed to rescue my Sax" "Well, maybe that's how you get out of here?". Chazz stopped dead in his pacing and looked right at Ojama Yellow. "Are you saying I should play my Sax, in order to get out of here?" "Yeah! We were here when Atticus was playing your sax, and he said he was moved to tears by your playing, so if you can get the rest of them in that state…." "They won't even see me walk out the top" Chazz smirked as he pulled out the sax and prepped himself. 'If this doesn't work, I gotta think of a new plan, and fast!'.

Up in a nearby tree, Jaden and Alexis were waiting. Alexis was growing impatient, she had seen someone enter the well, but no one had exited yet. Jaden was laid back, arms behind his head as he leaned against the tree, watching carefully to make sure no one slipped out while they were there. His focus was broken as the dirty blond beside him spoke up.

"Ugh, it's been like ten minutes, how long does it take to find a sax and get out?"" She grumbled as kept her gaze at the Well. Jaden, going back to watching the well replied, "Well, for all we know, they could making sure it's still there, and still intact. Who knows what else goes down there?" She sighed and brushed her bangs from her eyes, "I guess that's true, I just….I don't know, Atticus seems to have so much respect for... whoever this guy is, I just want to know why, nobody can be that good with a sax, right?". She stared at Jaden for an answer when music began being heard from the well, a lone, somber note echoing through the night, breaking the silence.

The lonesome wails of the sax were heard throughout the Island as Chazz poured his soul into the song. Each haunting note carried a memory, as tears poured down his face, he played harder, hoping that the song would move them.

"I've never heard anything like it…." Jaden mumbled as he felt emotions that were not his own flood to the front of his mind, and memories came roaring back of past days, when he was a young boy, with no friends by his side. Days spent talking to cards, because they would listen to his sorrows when no one else was there. He took out a single card, Flame Wingman. "You and me, we've been through it all together, eh buddy?" he choked out, tears beginning to form as he recalled all the duels he'd won, and played with him by his side.

"It's…it's amazing….." Alexis managed to say as memories of her childhood were brought up, her parents never around, Atticus essentially raising her into the person she had become today, days where the loneliness overwhelmed her, causing her to break down. Tears began pouring down her face as the memories came flooding back.

Yet still the music poured.

Chazz was letting everything go, all that pent up emotion, the fear, the depression, everything that had been kept inside was roaring forth, and he did not want it to stop. Yet he had to, because he had to escape. Placing the sax over his shoulder, he climbed out of the well, looking around, he heard choked sobs coming from a nearby tree. Looking closer, he noticed a dark red jacket amongst the green leaves, he gave them a salute, and began the run through the forest, uncertain of how much time he had before they noticed the music stopped. So he ran, holding on to his sax for dear life. He heard a hoarse shout from above him, but didn't stop to turn around, he just kept running.

"H..Hey! G-Get back here!" Hoarse shouts were heard as Alexis tried to call after the musician barreling down the path, tears stained her cheeks as she made her quick descent down. Hitting the ground, she took off after him, leaving Jaden to pull himself together as she picked up the pace.

"You won't get away from me!" She shouted after the musician as she tried to pick up the pace, she saw him turn into a heavily vegetated part of the forest, trying to find a way to lose her. Alexis followed him into the brush, stopping when she saw him leaning against a tree, catching his breath, she took a cautious step forward, but he turned around to glare at her. His face was hidden behind a poorly made mask, but there was no hiding the Obelisk Blue Jacket, even in the dimly lit forest, she at least knew the dorm now.

"Aha! So you're an Obelisk, are you? Well, that narrows down my search a lot, thanks for that, however, I think I'll just unmask you now, seeing as I've got you right where I want you" She began to walk forward, thinking she had it in the bag, she was not expecting what happened next. He put his hands up in surrender.

'Fuck, fuck, fuck! What am I gonna do? I can't let her see me, there's gotta be, something. Wait! I've got it!" Chazz spun around to see Alexis staring him down, moving closer to him. He put his hands up, showing his surrender, she stopped in her tracks. She continued to glare at him for a moment, then took another step closer, she was within arms reach of him now.

"Alright, take off the mask! Now! Or else!" Alexis stepped closer to prove her point, so, he reached a hand up and began to pull the mask up, it was just over his mouth when his other hand grabbed one of hers.

"What the hell do you think you're…." She was cut off as he quickly twisted her into a dip. His arm wrapped around her waist, staring into her deep hazel eyes, she glanced into his glistening black eyes, he hesitated a moment.

**Then he kissed her.**

Shock overtook Alexis as this total stranger took her first kiss, but it quickly subsided as she began to kiss him back. All thoughts of finding out who he was, all thoughts of discovering his identity, vanished. She softly whined as the kiss ended, her hands reached out to grab him, but he was already disappearing into the forest. The last thought that ran through her mind before she pulled herself together was simply, "Whoever that bastard is, he's one hell of a kisser".

'I just kissed Alexis, I don't believe it! This incredible!' Chazz was practically doing flips all the way back to the Slifer dorm. An incredible grin on his face as he peeled off the mask, shaking his head to rid himself of the stiff feeling in his hair, he reached the dorms in no time. Carefully sneaking into his room he put the sax under his bed, and threw the Obelisk Blue jacket after it.

"_Well, I'm guessing recovering your sax wasn't the biggest win of the night?_" Chazz laughed as he looked into the eyes of the dragon above him. "You're absolutely right" He smirked as he shut off the light.

Things were starting to look up after all.

**One last author's note before ending this chapter, leave reviews, be good readers, and enjoy, I'm gonna try and upload at least once a week, maybe twice. Also, this fic will get changed to M in a few chapters, just letting everybody know in advance. There will be some of that adult game that recommended for two people, but most people play by themselves for that story mode.**

**Until next we read!.**


	6. Getting over the Blues

**Quick author's note before this story continues,I'm not dead! I've just been stumped on this chapter, and college has been a major workload the past few weeks. That and I've been procrastinating like a motherfucker. However, I have returned! Chapters will be getting uploaded regularly from now on, and after this chapter, or the next, this story will be hopping over to M rated for, reasons. Namely that adult game recommended for two people, but most people play by themselves. (Gotta beat that sick single player campaign man!). Just letting you all know in advance. Now, hope you people like this next chapter, of Past Grief, makes Present Music.**

Chazz hadn't been sleeping well the past few nights, paranoia, anger, and pent up rage had been on his mind. Hence the bad sleep. Yet the last night had granted him such blissful, relaxing sleep, Chazz couldn't recall the last time he slept so well. He also couldn't remember when he had slept so short.

Waking up to the sounds of laughter, and shouting, was not how Chazz wanted to end his sleep, the fact it was seven in the morning didn't help him at all. Throwing the covers off of himself, he got up, stretched, and started getting dressed. Wiping the sleep from his eyes he threw on his jacket just in time for someone to start knocking on his door. He carefully shuffled over to the door, scanning his room to make sure nothing was out of place. He opened the door to see a very pumped up Jaden, a very bubbly Alexis, and two very tired Ra Yellow boys leaning against the guardrail.

"Chazz! You're not gonna believe what happened last night!" Jaden exclaimed as he pulled Chazz out of the dorm, almost falling off the balcony to the ground below, Chazz straightened up before turning to the Slifer Red.

"I was finally sleeping okay without the constant racket of all you knuckleheads?" he yawned, trying to determine if going back to bed was worth it at this point, he then took a closer look at Alexis, who's mood was somewhere between high in the clouds, to down to earth.

"Alexis, you…..okay? You seem to be in a few different places at the same time" He carefully broached the subject, not certain on what her response was going to be. "Well, it's…..not really any of your concern, but….well…." she began blushing furiously, pressing two fingers together. Fortunately for her, Jaden knew the story.

"We saw that musician guy last night Chazz! And….well, he got away, but he certainly left an impression on Alexis over hear, didn't he?" Her face turned a deeper shade of red. "H..He did not!" She spluttered, but Chazz knew exactly what happened. He tried to hide his grin as he decided to push a little further.

"So, what happened last night? You seem to be flustered about it enough for it to be important" Chazz smirked as she began to speak, but Jaden cut her off.

"She had him right in front of her! He was about to take off his mask too, but he got away! Because he kissed you!" "Will you stop talking already?!" Alexis was red in the face, blushing. She couldn't deny it. Her voice, her expression said it all, she had enjoyed it. A lot. Chazz smirked as the Ojamas floated in behind him.

"Wow! She got smooched by the musician? Sounds like big news!" "Yer telling me, and I thought he'd never have the balls to do it" "Will you two numbskulls knock it off?! We don't want to give it away!" and as fast as they appeared, they were gone in a flash. Shaking his head to try and think of what to ask her, he was cut short by the eldest Obelisk Blue who had just arrived.

"So, what's going on today? Everybody seems a bit tense, except for you three." He motioned to Jaden, Alexis, and Chazz, the three of them showing different emotions, but none of them seeming unhappy, or tense. Chazz just smirked and nodded in Alexis' direction.

"Why don't you ask her what's got her all up in the clouds? I think her big bro should know" he smiles as her blush just grows, trying to find her voice, she meekly states.

"...well, Jaden and I...kind of staked out the well last night to find the musician, and...um…" Atticus takes a few steps towards her, placing a hand on her shoulder, he looks right at her.

"Lex, did something happen last night?" she looks down, trying to avoid his stare, and she mutters.

"...he kissed me…" Atticus' eyes go wide for a moment, then, a small chuckle, growing to a full blown laugh as he steadies himself on the railing, he looks up, smiling. Alexis was less than pleased at her brother's reaction.

"What the hell is so funny? I thought...you'd care a little bit" Atticus just keeps laughing as he tries to answer her. Yet his words are drowned out by his laughter, instead, he waits until he can speak before responding.

"Lex, listen, I care, a lot, but, at the same time, everyone here knows exactly nothing about this guy, except he really rocks on that sax, and I honestly can't think of a better guy to steal your first kiss" Chazz ears perk up at this, noticing the fierce blush returning to her face.

'I stole her first kiss? I...I had no idea, I'm thrilled, but, at the same time, it doesn't feel like...like I got it' he shakes his head and starts heading to the stairs. Chazz was going for a long walk to clear his head, and somebody wanted to tag along.

"Hey, Chazz! Please wait up!" Alexis shouted after him as he slowed down for her, he said nothing as he kept moving, but he let her catch up to him before continuing his walk. Silence held between them until at last, Chazz dared to speak.

"Why are you coming with me exactly? Last I checked, I wasn't exactly in anybody's good books after what happened" His words lacked the confidence, the brash arrogance they usually held, instead a somber tone, and a saddened look in his eyes was all that was seen as she looked over to him. She thought for a moment, then decided on the honest answer.

"I kind of just wanted to get away from everybody else for a while, and just, I don't know, talk to someone who would get how it feels, to...I guess get pestered all the time. How do you cope with those Ojamas? Jaden says they're…..quite a handful at the best of times" Chazz looked over at her, taking in her words as to try and comprehend what was going on.

'She wants to talk about dealing with annoying pests? That's it? Well….to be fair, she's never really been all that fond of me, so, I guess pests is as good a place to start as any' he shrugged, and scratched his head for a moment.

"I guess I just ignore them, I was always pretty good at blocking out other people, growing up with two older brothers does that, especially when they're always talking about ruling the world, just. …..urgh!" he growls as he angrily kicks a pebble off the path, watching it roll into the distance, he shrugs, and sees Alexis looking at him….oddly.

"Can I help you miss?" he poses the question as if she needed help finding groceries. She looks at him, curiously.

"I had no idea you didn't like how you were raised Chazz" he snorts, then shrugs.

"There's lots you don't know about me"


	7. Hitting the High Notes

**Hey! It's been…..gosh, it's been two months, damn, that's a while, the writing bug hit me, so I'm picking this up again, I….**_**Might**_**, start a 5d's fanfic sometime, the writing is really getting me, but anyway, back to business. This chapter, it's getting dropped right now, I hope you all enjoy it. We now return to, Past Grief, makes Present Music**

Duel academy's spring dance and talent exhibition was fast approaching, and the air of the school could show it, people were getting ready, ordering dresses, tuxedos. Performances were getting booked for the big night, everything was going well.

_Well, mostly everything._

Chazz had been riding the high of his kiss with Alexis for a while, but he hadn't been able to shake the feeling that something could happen to reveal his identity, and he was beginning to think he might have to duel as the musician persona, so he had been building a deck just in case he had to. It was mostly dragon based, but had more than a few cards to help bring out his draconic allies.

"Boss, I know you're not the most fond of us, but building a whole new deck is a little harsh" Ojama Yellow sighed as the black cloaked duelist kept adding and removing cards from the deck, trying to find the ideal balance for the new deck, but struggling to do so. Ending up banging his head on his desk in frustration, he looked through his new deck for some sort of sign that it would work. He flipped through it until he came across the bi-colored dragon in it.

"_I know you've been paranoid about this whole ordeal, what with the, 'Swinging Duelist' personality and everything, but is the entirely new deck really necessary? I know your deck tends to stand out, but still, it's not all that bad." _ the large dragon settled beside Chazz in his room, staring at the teen, his troubles had not gone away, but they had been able to cope well. His brothers recently sending him his old guitar had done wonders for him.

Just then, the Ojamas piped up again, this time, a bit more excited. The three of them constantly trying to climb over each other to share the news, but none being able to share it, all that was heard was the arguing of the three, each wanting to tell Chazz what had happened.

"Boss! Boss! You're never gonna believe this!" "Someone signed up the swinging duelist to perform at the dance!" "He's the last performance of the night! The big show stopper!" the cards in his hands fell on his desk in a loud clatter as they all fell in different directions and faces, he got up and turned to them in almost raging disbelief.

"Someone….did WHAT?! I can't believe this…." He began pacing back and forth, his mind racing a million miles a minute. 'They can't honestly expect someone to just, show up and perform, right? There's no way, right?' ...although he had been wanting to show off for quite some time now.

A knock on the door ended his thought process, the spirits disappeared as soon as they showed up, and he quickly slid his deck into a drawer, and gently pushed his guitar and sax under his bed with his foot. 'Nobody's finding those' he thought to himself as he looked through the peephole in his door, seeing Alexis and Jaden at his door, he sighed, and slowly opened it up.

"Hey Chazz! How's it going buddy?" Jaden cheerfully asked as the black coated student stepped out of his room, looking grumpy as ever, he replied.

"I'm not your buddy, it's going badly, as usual, and lastly, what do you two want exactly?" Jaden gave a half-hearted laugh, and scratched the back of his neck as Alexis cleared her throat and began to speak.

"Well, that….I guess, jazz duelist has been signed up for the dance and talent show, we still have no idea who it is, but we do know that it's possible they might show up, so we were hoping we could maybe enlist your help to catch them?". Whatever air Chazz had in his lungs was knocked out of them as the question was asked as he started coughing, stunned, he looked up, seeing both of their concerned faces, he just growled.

"I'm not even certain I'm going to the dance, talent show, thing. However, if it means that much to you two, I'll think about it." Jaden looked at Chazz for a moment, then started grinning.

"Alright Chazz, tell you what, let's duel for it! If I win…" Jaden was shortly cut off by Alexis stepping in to the deal.

"Chazz, if I win this duel, you go to the dance, and, you MC it for the night too, but if you win, if you do decide to go, I'll….." she swallowed hard at this point, knowing she'd regret what she was about to say. "If you win, I'll...be your date…" Whatever thoughts Chazz had about turning down the offer were swept away as he heard Alexis say that, he nodded.

"Alright, deal, let's head off the upper stairway, then duel!" they proceeded down to the ground level, Chazz prepping himself for whatever could be thrown his way, knowing he could get whipped, but the prize was too good to ignore.

Alexis and Chazz squared off, both had their duel disks activate, Chazz started staring her down, hoping he could win this one.

**Duel Begin**

**Chazz LP: 4000**

**Alexis LP: 4000**

"Ladies first?" Chazz asked as Alexis drew her first card, she laughed as she looked at her hand.

"Alright, I'll summon Cyber Petit Angel, which allows me to add Machine Angel Ritual to my hand. Next, I'll activate the Ritual spell card, Machine Angel ritual, then, by sending Cyber Petit Angel, and my Cyber Gymnast, I can Ritual Summon Cyber Angel Idaten!" the two monsters were almost instantly transformed into the level 6 ritual, soon appearing on the field.

"Now, I can add a Ritual spell from my deck to my hand, like another Machine Angel Ritual from my deck to my hand, next, I'll place one card face down, and end my turn." Alexis had wasted no time in setting up her field for her next turn, but Chazz had studied it, and was formulating a plan of his own.

"Alright, I draw!" looking at his hand, he saw some options, but he wasn't certain how to proceed. 'Poly, Ojama Yellow, Masked Dragon, X-head Cannon, Ojamuscle, and...Pot of Greed! Yes'

"Alright, I'll play Pot of Greed, letting me draw another two cards" as he picked the two cards off the top of his deck, smirking as the cards he drew would lead him closer to victory.

'Ojamagic and Reload, these could be useful.' "Alright! I'll throw one monster face down in defense, and a card face down, next, I'll use Reload, this let's me shuffle my hand into the deck, and draw the same number of cards, so I'll send these four back, in order to get a different set of four!" as he shuffled his deck and drew his new hand, he smirked.

'Chthonian Polymer, Armed Dragon Lv 10, Ojamatch, and Ojamarking, this could work out well for me.' "I'll end my turn with two facedowns. Go" He smirks as he watches her get ready to make her move.

"Fine Chazz, my go, I draw! Next, I'll summon Blade Skater in attack position, and I'll go straight to my battle phase. Now, go Blade Skater! Attack his face down monster!" the female monster raced forward, just as the masked dragon flipped face up. The dragon took the hit head on, being destroyed in a fiery blast, Chazz just smiled.

"You of course know my dragon's effect, but just in case you don't, let me remind you. When Masked dragon is destroyed by battle and sent to the graveyard, he special summons another dragon type monster from my deck, but it has to have less than 1500 attack points, so I'll summon….another Masked Dragon!" as it appears in defense, Alexis sends her next monster after it, destroying it too.

"I'll summon another Masked Dragon in defense mode" As yet another take it's place on his field, he watches Alexis throw down two face down cards, ending her turn.

"My move, I draw!" He looks at the card he drew. 'Level up! Good, now, I think I can make this work'. "Alright, I'll activate the spell card Ojamatch! This lets me send an Ojama card from my hand to the graveyard, like Ojamarking…" he then puts said card in his graveyard "in order to add two cards from my deck, to my hand, an Armed Dragon, and an Ojama monster, I'll add Armed Dragon Lv 3, and Ojama Blue to my hand! Now, I get to summon one of them to my field, I'll go with Armed Dragon Lv 3!" as the small, orange dragon landed on the field, it flexed before taking it's position. "I'm not done yet, I'll activate another spell card, Level up! Meaning my dragon goes from Lv 3, to Lv 5!" as the small dragon disappears, a bigger, more armored version comes to the field to take its place.

"Now, I'll use it to attack your Cyber Angel Idaten! Go for it Armed Dragon Lv 5! Inferno Roar!" as the dragon began rapidly spinning it's arms around, Alexis revealed her trap.

"Not so fast, you remember this? Doble Passe! I make your monster attack me directly, saving my monster, and you take the same amount of damage I do!" as her lifepoints drop to just 1600, Chazz's follow suit, clenching his fist he looks up to see her shaken, but smirking at the predicament in front of them.

**Chazz Lifepoint: 4000-2400=1600**

**Alexis Lifepoint: 4000-2400=1600**

"I'll end my turn with another facedown, your move"

As she draws her next card, Chazz notices something, her hearts not really in this duel, sure, she had determination, but she wasn't set on just winning it, there was more to this than just a win or loss for either side. Then it dawned on him.

'She's not dueling for me to be MC, that's just an excuse, she wants to duel me to see if she can beat me'. He sees her grimace at her draw, she then switches her two monsters to defence, ending her turn. Chazz draws his next card, Ojamuscle. 'Not useful at the moment, but I might be able to draw her out if I could pull out Ojama King'. "Alright, straight to business, Armed Dragon Lv 5, destroy her Cyber Angel!" as it rushed forward, it immediatly smashes through her monster, leaving dust in its wake. Standing up straight, Chazz ends his turn. "And at the end of my turn, when Armed Dragon Lv 5 destroyed a monster this turn, it evolves, to a Lv 7!" as it disappears, the bigger, more monstrous version takes the stage. Letting out a deafening roar as it stands before them, Chazz smiles, knowing he might win this after all.

Alexis draws her next card, smirking, she then straightens up.

"It's over Chazz! I activate my ritual spell, Cyber Angel Ritual! I now send Cyber Tutu, and Cyber Prima from my hand to the graveyard, in order to ritual summon Cyber Angel Dakini! When she's summoned, I get to make you send a monster to your graveyard, so choose!" Chazz looks at his field, then makes the obvious choice.

"I'll send my masked dragon to the grave" as the monster disappears, Alexis smiles.

"Now, I'll switch my Blade skater to attack position. Now, I'll send my Cyber Angel Dakini to attack your Armed Dragon! Since they have the same attack, they're both destroyed! As both monsters are sent to the graveyard, her Blade Skater starts warming up, and Chazz realizes something.

He lost.

Again.

"Blade Skater! Attack him directly!"

**Chazz Lifepoint: 1600-1800=0**

As he takes the damage, he takes the moment to heart to realize something.

'She won, but...maybe this loss wasn't so terrible' as he brushes off his coat, he looks up to see Jaden high fiving her, and Alexis smiling like a fool as she takes in the victory. He turns and starts walking away, but stops for a moment.

"I'll be the Mc for your dance and talent show, but be warned, I'm gonna make sure that...fucking Musical duelist shows up, mark my words, then this whole thing can be put to rest." as he walks away, the duel spirits showed up to talk to him about his growing plan.

"Uh, boss, are you sure that was a good idea? I mean, you'll actually have to pull double duty for once, is that really a smart thing to do?" as the Yellow spirit hovers in front of him, the twin colored titan shows up beside him.

"_I agree with this, thing, for once. Are you sure this is such a wise decision? It's risky, even without you being the MC for the evening" _Chazz just smiles, puts his arms behind his head, and keeps walking.

"I think I have an idea of how to make this work, but I'll definitely need a better mask for this" He ponders for a moment when he hears someone shouting his name behind him. He turns to see Alexis behind him.

"Can I help you?" He asks as she catches her breath after reaching him, standing up straighter, she looks at him, looks down at her feet, then says.

"Um...look, I know you've been pretty down lately, and...well, you dueled well back there, I decided, that….if you wanted….I'll still be your date to the dance" he could almost physically feel his jaw drop to the floor, before hearing Light and Darkness Dragon speak to him.

"_Correction, I think your mission just became impossible_"


	8. Second Verse? Should Probably Reherse

**Yes, hi, hello my fans, so nice to, write to you all today, regarding last chapters incident with the last chapter being the first chapter, I have one thing to say.**

**I made a boo boo, it happens.**

**But anyway, getting back on track, I'm gonna be doing a little poll, thing, down in the reviews today, just to see what kind of act he should do for the talent show because….fuck if I know what I want him to do, there's so many options.**

**Anyway, we're going to go ahead with the next chapter of, Past Grief, makes Present Music.**

**Roll the Footage!**

It was a slow afternoon at duel academy, classes had finished, the weekend was approaching, and the dueling arena was slowly being transformed into a dance hall. Decorations and tables, speakers, everything was looking great.

Except for Chazz, who had begun panicking about how he was going to pull double duty at the talent show.

"Shit, shit, SHIT! How did I let myself get roped into this? This is so bad, I can't cancel on the date with Alexis, that's something I've been after since….day one, but I can't just drop the performance of the masked Musician, that would wreck my chance to wow the school with my musical talents. But I don't even know what I would do for the show!" he lets his head start banging on his bedroom wall, a happy break from all his pacing. Ojama Yellow cautiously popped up to see what the load banging was all about.

"You know boss, the last time you did this, you accidentally gave yourself a black eye, maybe you should give it a rest, for just a moment? Pretty please?" "Oh, like you know so much? Gah!" as he angrily throws one of his textbooks across the room, the resulting thud on the wall was little compensation for the massive amount of papers that flew everywhere, namely his sheet music he'd been working on. Chazz's eyes went wide with horror as it started floating all over the room, gathering his wits, he managed to collect the majority of them, except for the last few by his door. A loud knock was heard just then.

"Hey, Chazz? You in there? It sounds like Syrus trying to get out of bed in the morning in there"

"It does not Jay! And you know it".

Freezing in place, he silently prayed to whatever deity was above to send them away, just let them go.

'Come on, just let them leave, please, just this once!' he quietly pleaded while he reached for the last few at the door. Grabbing them and sliding them under his bed, he straightend himself up, and answered the door.

"Is there something I can do to help you two? Like an eviction notice?" He noted that Jaden and Syrus were alone, and looked, off, something about them wasn't screaming their usual, hyper annoying selves.

"What's going on? Why aren't you two….as annoying as usual?" Syrus shushed him and they both silently walked into Chazz's room. Growing more and more irritated by the moment, he hoped he could quickly kick them out so he could continue his panic attack in peace.

"Hey, Chazz, we uh….look, there's no easy way to put this, but there's more than a few people, who are…..shall we say, less than happy you're going to be the Mc for next week's talent show, and dinner? And some people even less happy that Alexis is going with you to the dance" Syrus tried to tactfully state while Jaden kind of tried to awkwardly stay out of it.

"Chazz, man, there are some P.O'ed guys out there, wanting to duel, you, so they can be Alexis' date, and not you, I recommend you keep a low profile for a while, but maybe get out of your room for a bit, we...kind of saw a bunch of Obelisk fourth years on their way….hehe" Whatever concern Chazz had about getting Jaden and Syrus out of his room, vanished.

It was now about getting him out of his room. Grabbing a bag, and stuffing his sheet music, and pencils into it before the two bozos could see anything, he also grabbed a solid, black, rectangular case, and pushed out of the door and started hightailing it to the docks.

'I never go there, it'd be like the last place anyone would look for me, right?' as he made his way past them and over to the beach, he noticed a few things, namely, a secluded part of the beach leading to an alcove, and some shops setting up before the dance and talent show. Carefully moving around the shops to place his stuff down, he went back to check out the shops, noticing a few interesting items. Wood carved duel disks, leather deck boxes, dueling goggles. But what caught his eye most, was a mask stand, walking over, he saw a wide variety of them, ranging from full head, to just the eyes, smirking to himself, he decided to poke around, finding something that suited him nicely he thought.

Placing it on, it showed Chazz in a white and black mask, the colors splitting down the middle, one color covering each eye, going just on his nose, and tying around the back of his head, he smiled at his reflection in the mirror.

"_Not a bad look, if I do say so_" LaD stated as it appeared by his side, Chazz started to play with his hair, figuring out how to disguise that would not be easy, but it would need to be done.

Purchasing the mask, and walking back to his stuff, he slowly opened up his black case, showcasing a magnificent black and red guitar, tuning it to his particular desire, he started a slow, easy strum, quickly rising to a fast Flamenco. The sounds could be heard across the beach, but nobody could locate where they were originating. Stopping his flamenco, he pondered if he could do something like that for his performance, when suddenly, he heard footsteps.

Panicking, he threw on the mask, and shed his coat, throwing it aside, he had just enough time to slick back his hair before he heard a voice.

A voice that usually made him pretty happy, but in this instance, it made him full of absolute fear.

"Well, well, well, looks like I'm not the only guitarist on this island after all. Now let's drop the formalities and get down to business." he turned to see a brunette standing before him, his shoulder length hair easily recognizable.

"Let's duel, I win, you lose the mask".

**Oh, bananas, that shit got real. Two questions for the lot of you that I actually want answered.**

**Number 1: Should our new found rival win this upcoming duel? Or Should our protagonist keep his identity a secret? Also, if you correctly guess who our new rival is, you'll get….one clap, that's all you'll get**

**And Number 2: What would you guys like to see Chazz perform at the talent show, dance, thing. **

**Soulful piano act.**

**Swinging Jazz.**

**Fast Paced Guitar. **

**High octane Piano**

**Slow, relaxing guitar.**

**Or just, something else with one of those three instruments, let me know in the reviews!**

**Until the next one my dear friends, keep dueling! Keep Reading! **


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